A music teacher who inspired Kate Nash to pursue a career as a singer has been jailed on child porn charges.
Derek Berditch, 58, who taught the singer/songwriter at a school in Hertfordshire, England, pleaded guilty to possessing nearly 60,000 explicit photographs of children, as well as films and “extreme pornography”.
The stash was discovered following a police raid on his home earlier this year and he has now been jailed for 18 months. Berditch will also be listed on Britain’s sex offenders register for 10 years.
During a hearing at Southwark Crown Court in London on Tuesday, Judge Andrew Goymer told Berditch he is “unfit” to be a tutor, adding, “It is shameful for a teacher to engage in this kind of conduct, it damages public confidence in the profession and it undermines the trust of parents who allowed their children to be taught unsupervised.”
Nash has previously sung the praises of her former music teacher, insisting he encouraged her to take her talents seriously, saying, “There was a very enthusiastic music teacher, Derek Berditch, at St Joan of Arc Catholic School. He just loved music. I remember lessons where he would ask if we had heard or seen something and if we said no he would scrap the lesson plan and we would watch Cabaret or listen to an album. He was a super music fan and encouraged us to join the choir and learn an instrument. I was lucky to have someone that really encouraged me… to be creative.”

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